The conviction of a Pakistani doctor who tried to help the CIA locate the hiding place of Osama bin Laden is further exacerbating tensions between Washington and Islamabad and could affect U.S. ability to negotiate a deal with Pakistan over re-opening NATO supply lines, senior U.S. officials told CNN.

Dr. Shakil Afridi on Wednesday was convicted of treason for having assisted the United States in trying to uncover the location of the terror leader last year under the guise of a vaccination campaign in Abbottabad, Pakistan. He was sentenced to 33 years by a tribal court in northwestern Pakistan, and sent to prison in Peshawar following the ruling.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Defense Secretary Leon Panetta have both spoken of their concern for Afridi, and have called for his release.

Clinton said Thursday that the United States "does not believe there is any basis for holding Dr. Afridi."
"His help, after all, was instrumental in taking down one of the world's most notorious murderers."

"This action by Dr. Afridi helped to bring about the end of the reign of terror - designed and executed by bin Laden - (and) was not in anyway a betrayal of Pakistan. ... We will continue to press it with the government of Pakistan."

Senior U.S. officials said Afridi worked with the United States prior to the bin Laden raid, but was never asked to spy on Pakistan and was only asked to help locate al-Qaeda terrorists posing a threat to both Pakistan and the United States.

"Over the course of his several years of service, Dr. Afridi was able to provide valuable information on al Qaeda in the FATA, the group's safe-haven," a senior U.S. official with knowledge of Afridi's activities in Pakistan told CNN. "Dr. Afridi was inadvertently able to confirm something we already suspected - that bin Laden's couriers practiced extraordinary operational security. Was that a key to the raid? No. Was it important? Absolutely."

Another senior U.S. official with knowledge of counterterrorism operations against al Qaeda in Pakistan told CNN that Afridi "helped save Pakistani and American lives. His activities were not treasonous, they were heroic and patriotic."

Afridi's conviction adds to an already-damaged and fractured relationship between the United States and Pakistan. Relations between the two countries essentially froze last November following the accidental killing of Pakistani soldiers in a NATO airstrike. Pakistan in turn closed supply lines into Afghanistan that NATO used to support the war effort.

Senior administration officials pointed to Clinton's statement about the ruling, which she made unprompted by any questions from journalists, as evidence of the seriousness with which the U.S. takes the issue.

Senior State Department officials have pointed to her remarks and reinforced her message in subsequent calls with Pakistani officials, the senior administration officials said.

"We are saying exactly along the lines of what she said," one senior official said. "We tell the Pakistanis they have agreed bin Laden should not have been in their country and we could easily argue that they should have been helping us get him. This case colors the attitude of the U.S. government, but also of the U.S. Congress at budget time."

Congressional outrage was in full force Thursday as the Senate Appropriations Committee voted to cut $33 million from the military aid package to Pakistan.

The figure derived from Afridi's 33-year sentence.

The 30-0 roll call was based on an amendment to the Senate version of the State and Foreign Operations Appropriations bill. The amendment calls for the $33 million to be upheld until "the Secretary of State reports to the Committees on Appropriations that Dr. Shakil Afridi has been released from prison and cleared of all charges relating to the assistance provided to the United States in locating Osama bin Laden."

"For them to do what they did signals this is a pretty big issue," the senior administration official said.

Officials said Afridi's case could tie U.S. hands to negotiate a deal with Pakistan to reopen its border with Afghanistan to military shipments of departing NATO forces, which would resolve a sticky issue in planning the withdrawal of foreign forces.

Pakistan closed the ground routes after a NATO airstrike in November killed two dozen of its soldiers. NATO insists the incident was an accident. Obama offered his condolences, but refused to apologize.

The United States and Pakistan have not come to an agreement on the price of reopening the supply lines, known as the ground lines of communication or GLOCs. The senior U.S. officials said the deal is essentially done except for agreement on a fee for trucks that cross the border. Pakistan was requesting $5,000 per truck as a condition to reopen the supply lines between the two South Asian countries but previously, the United States had been paying just a "small fraction" of the requested fee and is not expected to pay the stiff fees, officials said.

"We are talking now about the GLOCs but the Afridi issue could hurt our ability to negotiate a deal," the second senior U.S. official said. "If Congress did what it did yesterday, what else are they going to do?

soundoff(612 Responses)

Jesse Grillo

Our community is better because you are in it. After looking over a number of the blog posts on your blog, I seriously like your way of blogging. amazing job on this article! When I opened my Iphone this website was running.

Give him the medals but take away his freedom. Penalty for collaborating with enemies is treason of the highest order in most civilized countries. Most Hindustanis on this page think otherwise. Then again who considers India civilized.

PAKISTAN.....The New Gateway to Central Asia and Europe.
With a population of over 180 million most of whom are well educated, English speaking, entrepreneurial and a cultural and social fit with Central Asians...Pakistan will now become the new face and gateway to Central Asia and Europe. Pakistan will thus span this region and provide the impetus for growth, prosperity and unity among these countries.

Peeps, I have the runs...to much beef jerky. Gotta go and then wash dishes. Be back

May 31, 2012 at 10:13 pm |

krm1007

Pakistan hid bin Laden for a decade and now Pakistanis are trying to kill the doctor who helped find him. Bin Laden was a Pakistani hero and the Pakistani national pride was severely hurt by this doctor.

Beats the heck out of me as what this Indian army was doing when a bunch of teenage talibans with BB guns invaded the country. Seriously, folks they can't be sooooo cowardly these Indian soldiers. Don't they have commandos etc for pete's sake? WHat are we Americans giving the aid for to these Indians? To make us look bad? Time to switch gears.

Amanda ji, they were eating raw onions with roti in bunkers, these jawaans. They don't get paid eough to have 3 meals a day so they won't fight.

May 31, 2012 at 4:24 pm |

JR

At an ecumenical meeting held in New Delhi on Saturday (Oct. 24), the secretary general of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India, Archbishop Stanislaus Fernandes, said the rise of fundamentalism was “seriously worrying” the church in India. The meeting was held to discuss prospects for immediate enactment of federal legislation to counter religious extremism with the proposed Communal Violence (Prevention, Control and Rehabilitation of Victims) Bill.

Peeps I now again have to go back to washing dishes and cleaning toilets in a hot pillow joint owned by Patels from India. I will see you all later. Hare om hare om. BTW I took a break to post the comments. Please don't tell Patels otherwise will be fired and deported to Mumbai.

May 31, 2012 at 4:10 pm |

krm1007

Pakistan hid bin Laden and now Pakistanis are trying to kill the doctor who helped find him. Bin Laden was a Pakistani hero and the Pakistani national pride was severely hurt by this doctor.

New, More Dangerous Hindu Extremist Groups Emerge in India: Jews and Christians and Muslims need to get outta India.

Christians concerned as rightwing factions splinter to form militant outfits.
PUNE, India, October 29 (CDN) — After more than a decade of severe persecution, India’s Christian minority is growing increasingly concerned over the mushrooming of newer and deadlier Hindu extremist groups.

Gone are the days when Christians had to watch out only for the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (World Hindu Council) and its youth wing, Bajrang Dal, which are closely linked with the most influential Hindu extremist umbrella organization, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). With voter support faltering for the RSS’s political wing, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), moderate and extremist sections within the Hindu nationalist movement are blaming each other, and militant splinter groups have emerged.

Peeps I now again have to go back to washing dishes and cleaning toilets in a hot pillow joint owned by Patels from India. I will see you all later. Hare om hare om. BTW I took a break to post the comments. Please don't tell Patels otherwise will be fired and deported to Mumbai.

May 31, 2012 at 4:11 pm |

Ehud Meir

From my prism Dr. Afridi did a good thing Re: OBL but it seems the way he went about doing it was quite repulsive. We can keep on arguing about it till the cows come home but those who want to give him a medal should have already done so. Pakistan has done or will do what it needs to. Never the twain shall meet.

Now Habib, the Pakistani, is disgracing Jewish people by assuming a Jewish identity. But defending Pakistan blew his cover again. There are no Jews in Pakistan - the last synagogue was demolished by Islamists in 1980s. So, Habib needs to stop pretending to be a Jew who is pro-Pakistani. There is no such thing as a pro-Pakistani Jew. Habib, please get a decent education without which you will continue to work in 7-11.

Peeps I now have to go back to washing dishes and cleaning toilets in a hot pillow joint owned by Patels from India. I will see you all later. Hare om hare om

May 31, 2012 at 3:32 pm |

Peter Luke

This @JR guy sounds like a real loser and is probably an Indian hindu terrorist which I refer to as a Hindu Taliban (HinduBan...if you will). He needs to get a life. if one cannot make some reasonably intelligent comments, better to stay off the forum.

Habib, the Pakistani, has now stolen the identity of Peter Luke and Ehud Meir. He can be recognized by his anti-Hindu, anti-American, anti-Semitic, anti-western content so easily. Identity theft is tolerated in his Islam - that's what he means when he claims that Islam is a religion of tolerance.

India poses a clear and present danger to the regional security of the world. ...to USA...NATO...Pakistan and Afghanistan people and armed forces. Hindu cult extremism is on the rise and fanning all terrorism worldwide. Indians are the bankers to and financing terrorism and supporting Talibans and Al Qaeda and harboring them in India. These terrorists are being entertained in the Indian parliament building in New Delhi where they are residing and then smuggled over to Pakistan in Indian Army helicopters. Shame on these Indians.

Jr or JR....six of one half dozen of the other. Confused personalities.

May 31, 2012 at 11:33 am |

JR

Habib, the Pakistani, can easily be identified through his pro-Pakistani and pro-Islamic content. Habib's messages have anti-America, anti-Israel, anti-Semitic, anti-India, and/or anti-western content. So, there is no confusion when anyone reads the content. Habib is ashamed of his heritage and therefore he is misusing my name "JR" to create confusion. When 711 reads the contents of his messages, Habib will lose his job as an attendant.

Is habib JR or JR habib...Hmmmmm ....Me confused. Now i have to go gas up JR in 911

May 31, 2012 at 12:21 pm |

JR

Habib, Yes. You are the only one who is confused here because you are posting under my name "JR". Everyone knows that if the message is pro-Islamic, it is from Habib (posting under all kinds of names including JR). So, ignore who is posting and read the content.

May 31, 2012 at 12:31 pm |

Sheikh Ahmed bin Al Huseini

This is typical of American rush to judgement on this doctor issue as in other issues related to Muslim world. Pakistan is saying this man was convicted based on helping banned militant organizations who are killing Americans and Pakistanis. US administration and congress look like idiots as they have been harping on Bin laden connection. This is exactly how the 24 Pakistani soldiers were murdered by Americans based on deliberately innaccurate information provided by Indians and Afghanis. US are like cowboys, trigger happy and love to shoot off the hip. They have lost all respect especially mine. Indians and Afghanis are hiding behind the American skirts.

I am of the view that an Islamic Union should be formed. As a nuclear nation, Pakistan should play a prominent role in this organization. All muslims need to get behind Pakistan and help it succeed as the new regional power.

Ya Sheikh ya Habeebi. You are dead on. Not only that some of the Indians posting comments in this forum look like bufoons too including me. Please forgive me as i believed the Americans and they let me to the path of ridicule in this doctor's case. I beg everyone's forgiveness and if you will now excuse me I have to go to my night shift to wash dishes in a dhabba.

Habib, the Pakistani, is trying to mislead by posting under my name "JR" now. This is not my message.

May 31, 2012 at 10:43 am |

JR

How do we know it is not your message? Stop confusing the issue please.

May 31, 2012 at 11:25 am |

JR

Habib is now posting as "Sheikh Ahmed bin Al Huseini". Habib, the Pakistani Islamist, uses many different names; however, the message is the same - his messages are always anti US and pro Pakistani. Habib is saying that the doctor helped militants. However, the Islamic religious decree issued by Pakistani Taliban orders murdering the doctor in the name of Allah. Habib, you are wrong again. So, could you please try to stay at least a little informed?

It will probably be a stretch getting all to put Pakistan on the pedestal. But an interesting concept with good timing. I think Pres General Musharraf of Pakistan unilaterally tried to achieve that with some success.

GOD BLESS PAKISTAN,
Land that we love.
Stand beside her, and guide her
Thru the night with a light from above.
From Kashmir to Karachi and onto New Delhi,
And to the oceans, white with foam
GOD BLESS PAKISTAN, Our home sweet home.
Home to the rich and poor and needy,
Home to the Muslims, Christians, Hindus, Sikhs and Buddhists and everyone else
GOD BLESS PAKISTAN, the Land of the Beautiful and the Brave.

Yaar, JR why don't you make up your mind whether you are he or she-male or what you stand for. You keep on repeating stupid comments that make no sense. You are giving a horrid name to Hindus and Indians. Please post some intelligent comments. Otherwise stick to your day job as dubbawala.

Habib, the Pakistani, is trying to tell us that he is a total loser: Habib is an Islamist and a Pakistani. That is 2X loser. Habib, God does not bless violence and therefore can not and will not bless Pakistan. Start believing in something real.

Unbelievable!! CNN allows Pakistani terrorists like Habib to post their jihadi messages.
Habib, the gas station is not working out for you? You are trying to make some income on the side by supporting Jihadi propaganda?

Our brothers and sisters are the key to galvanizing the muslim world. We look up to them to lead the way being a nuclear power. As Panetta seeks to damage control the and contain China...we in the Islamic world have conveyed to Pakistan that besides being the new face and gateway to Central Asia and Europe, the muslim countries are inviting Pakistan to be the new face and leader of the Islamic World and Middle East also. All our resources are behind them. We are in process of evolving an Islamic Union of Nations that will will take the world civilization to its next level of achievements. We invite all the neighboring countries and western nations to join our mission instead of sitting on the sidelines.

Habib, You have changed your name again!! You may already know that the drones strikes are contagious - Any country which would join Pakistan in its mission will get similarly affected. So, good luck asking other countries to join you. Haven't you wondered why not a single country has ever come forward in favor of Pakistan and spoke against the drone strikes?
711 does not ask too many questions while hiring... Have a nice day, Habib.

GOD BLESS PAKISTAN,
Land that we love.
Stand beside her, and guide her
Thru the night with a light from above.
From Kashmir to Karachi and onto New Delhi,
And to the oceans, white with foam
GOD BLESS PAKISTAN, Our home sweet home.
Home to the Muslims, Christians, Hindus, Sikhs and Buddhists and everyone else
GOD BLESS PAKISTAN, the Land of the Beautiful and the Brave.

May 31, 2012 at 7:45 am |

JR

Habib, the Pakistani, is again posting under my name "JR". Habib, everyone knows that the God does not bless a violent and murderous country like Pakistan. Pakistan is a Jihadist country with Islamist citizens like you. So, quit reading your Qran and read the Bible or Torah or any decent book. It will help you.

May 31, 2012 at 11:07 am |

Jonathan Halperin

Conclusions from US presidential debates.
ONE: Pakistan holds the key to the next presidential elections in USA
SECOND: Pakistan should be made a permanent member of the UN Security Council in recognition of its contributions and sacrifices in fighting the terror war and making the world safe and prosperous for US/NATO/ and the rest of the world

Habib, the Pakistani, has changed his identity again!! It is not easy being a two time loser - a Pakistani and an Islamist. So, please understand why he has to keep changing his identity. But when you read his fanciful pro-Pakistani posts, it is very easy to identify Habib.

Again, yaar, JR why don't you make up your mind what you stand for. You are giving a horrid name to Hindus and Indians.

May 31, 2012 at 8:14 am |

JR

GOD BLESS PAKISTAN, Our home sweet home.
Home to the rich and poor and needy,
Home to the Muslims, Christians, Hindus, Sikhs and Buddhists and everyone else
GOD BLESS PAKISTAN, the Land of the Beautiful and the Brave.

Habib, the Pakistani who works at 711 gas station, is posting under my name "JR". Habib, you can ask god all you want but only satan would bless something so violent and vile. God can not bless violence or identity theft.

May 31, 2012 at 11:10 am |

Dinesh Chinoy

“While the storm clouds gather far across the North and East,
Let us swear allegiance to a land that’s free,
Let us be grateful for a land so fair,
Let us thank for the foresight to seek Independence from India,
As we raise our voices in a solemn prayer.”

GOD BLESS PAKISTAN,
Land that we love.
Stand beside her, and guide her
Thru the night with a light from above.
From Kashmir to Karachi and onto New Delhi,
And to the oceans, white with foam
GOD BLESS PAKISTAN, Our home sweet home.
Home to the rich and poor and needy,
Home to the Muslims, Christians, Hindus, Sikhs and Buddhists and everyone else
GOD BLESS PAKISTAN, the Land of the Beautiful and the Brave.
AMEN AMEN AMEN

OOOps posted in the wrong spot under some weirdo hindu who calls himself JR and is obsessed with gas. . There is why we moved from Bombay...too much smell as everyone used to eat Daal there as they could not afford meat. PHHHHEWWWWW. So here we go....

God Bless you too, Dinesh. I have very fond memories of my childhood in Karachi. My dad worked for Burmah Shell Oil at that time. What a lovely city. Wonderful people. When we were transferred to Bombay...we could not adjust to our new environment in India and opted to return back to USA. I wish nothing but the best to Pakistanis and their quest for regional leadership which is imminent

No Dave Devney could live in Karachi, Pakistan and live to tell about it. Christians were prosecuted in Pakistan for being Christians and have left Pakistan. "Dave Devney" is actually Habib, the Pakistani Islamist. 711 needs to take some action against its employees involved in identity theft.

May 30, 2012 at 6:30 pm |

Haji Rajiv Patel

WE SALUTE YOU PAKISTAN !!!!!
THANK YOU …. THANK YOU…. THANK YOU!!!!
FOR MAKING USA SAFE FOR MAKING THE WORLD SAFE>>>>>>>>>>>>
Since Sep 11, 2001, 21,672 Pakistani civilians have lost their lives or have been seriously injured in the war against terror.

The Pakistani Army also has lost 2,795 soldiers while 8,671 soldiers have been wounded. More than 3.5 million have been displaced while the country has lost $68 billion due to terrorism.

Despite sacrifices, Pakistan was still engaged in 'the war for world peace”.

Habib, Habib, Habib... Again praising Pakistan like a fanatic Pakistani you are. When Pakistan charged the doctor for helping America, you praised them. Now Pakistan is making up new charges accusing the doctor for helping militants, you are saluting Pakistan again!! Now, can you please clean up your gas station? You are giving 711 a bad name. Bad Habib.

God Bless you too, Dinesh. I have very fond memories of my childhood in Karachi. My dad worked for Burmah Shell Oil at that time. What a lovely city. Wonderful people. When we were transferred to Bombay...we could not adjust to our new environment in India and opted to return back to USA. I wish nothing but the best to Pakistanis and their quest for regional leadership which is imminent.

May 30, 2012 at 5:44 pm |

Rajesh Patel

Get a life....go wash the toilets in some motel in Tennessee...instead of harping on gas all the time. If you are having stomach issues take pepto bismal for indians (extra strength) !

May 30, 2012 at 6:08 pm |

JR

Habib, the Pakistani Islamist has stolen the identifies of his customers at the 711 gas station he works at: Habib is now posting under the names of Haji Rajiv Patel, Dave Devney and Rajesh Patel. Habib, give it up. Everyone knows.

May 30, 2012 at 7:02 pm |

JR

“While the storm clouds gather far across the North and East,
Let us swear allegiance to a land that’s free,
Let us be grateful for a land so fair,
Let us thank for the foresight to seek Independence from India,
As we raise our voices in a solemn prayer.”

The Aghoris are members of a Hindu sect in India who worship Shiva. But the thing that makes their ancient traditions bizarre is that they are also practicing cannibals and their temples are cremation grounds. An aghori lives in the cremation ground and is able to support himself there – his clothing comes from the dead, his firewood comes from the funeral pyres, and food from the river. When a person is cremated, an aghori will coat himself in the ashes of the body and meditate on the dead.

The most shocking aspect of the Aghori life is their cannibalism. Dead bodies that are found floating in the river are gathered up and meditated on. The limbs are then removed by the Aghori and eaten raw. Gruesome video of the cannibalistic practices of this Hindu cult can be googled.

Why don't you go wash dishes instead of giving us indians a bad name. Don't you have anything intelligent to say?

May 30, 2012 at 6:05 pm |

Double Dave

The US officials said that Afridi's family was offered to leave Pakistan with him as part of the resettlement plan. The officials said he rejected the offer. The doctor made a really bad decision. What was he thinking?

"Amnesty International is calling for an impartial investigation into mass graves found in Indian-controlled Kashmir. Sunday, India's Jammu and Kashmir State Human Rights Commission released a report saying a three-year investigation had uncovered 2,156 unidentified bodies in 38 sites in the region. In a statement released Monday, Amnesty International asked Indian officials to allow impartial forensic experts to carry out a thorough investigation of the skeletal remains. The rights group also urged Indian authorities to ensure the safety of the witnesses who gave statements to police during the investigation. Indian authorities conducted the inquiry in response to allegations that Indian security forces have committed rights abuses in fighting a more than two-decade-long Muslim separatist insurgency. Rights activists say at least 8,000 people have gone missing in Indian Kashmir since the separatists began fighting in 1989 for independence from Hindu-majority India or a merger with Muslim-majority Pakistan. Rebel attacks and Indian government crackdowns have killed at least 50,000 people.

India's ambassador to the US has been pulled from an airport security line and patted down by a security agent in Mississippi after attending a conference. After that she was kicked out of the country for hiding contraband in her sari. A few months ago the Indian president was stripped at JFK and found to be hiding betelnuts in his underwear. Underwear Betelnutter?

@Abigail. You stole the words from my mouth. Well said. Pakistan is playing its cards very well. It is not only flexing its muscles but telling the world they've arrived...as the new regional power . More power to them.

The way I see it any collaboration with an intelligence agency of another country in your country of origin, while bypassing your establishment, is Treason (with a cap "T") of the highest order. No two ways about it. It is a matter of principle and law.

Treason? No way this Pakistani doctor has anything to do with treason. The Pakistanis are the ones who shut down the NATO/US supply routes - That is the real act of treason. This doctor is being punished by the treacherous Pakistanis because they are mad at the Senators for chopping off the USAID considerably.

Maybe he can help finding terroists Brhamdagh Bugti and Maulvi Fazlullah etc. being wined and dined in India.Shall ISI send him over to India? Will India give him a medal then? Yeahhhh, now I am sure you get it though your thick head !!

What are you talking about? How can finding a terrorist be treason? You need to read what is going on here before you post an uninformed comment like that. The doctor helped collect DNA evidence. He did not reveal anyone's sensitive information.

The Aghori or Aghouri is a Hindu cult that is considered to have split off from the Kapalika order in the fourteenth century AD. They have cannibalistic rituals. The streets of northern Indian cities are littered with followers of this cult carrying a kapala, which is a cup made from a skull! These bizarre people will eat anything from rotten food to animal faeces. In order to achieve the highest citadel of enlightenment, the Aghori will perform horrendously crude rituals. The finality of their rituals is attained from eating the decaying flesh of a human

This is absolutely disgusting and unacceptable. US Congress please take note and stop all aid to India. I could not even imagine such a barbaric hindu culture could be in practice in the 21st century. I could not imagine americans want to associated with such medieval country.

Unfortunately, there are a lot of barbaric Islamic rituals and abominable practices which spread out of the Arabian peninsula. Some really terrible things have spread out of Mecca and Medina to surrounding places. Truly disgusting. Such is Islam.

Unfortunately, it gets worse in the Hindu culture... BARBARIC...DECADENT

Bizarre child-burying Hindu ceremony in India
CNN:
Indian police have charged 80 people for burying children alive in an ancient Hindu ceremony known as "the festival of pits."
The ceremony, in which children - some less than a year old - are buried alive briefly and then dug up, happened on Monday in southern Tamil Nadu state, The Asian Age reported on Thursday.

Every two years, parents who have vowed to bury their first-born if they are blessed with a child, take part in the Kuzhimattru Thiru Vizha ceremony.
The children are drugged to make them unconscious and placed in shallow "graves" in temple courtyards.
The pits are covered with leaves and dirt and the children are pulled out after Hindu priests chant a brief prayer - lasting up to a minute.

In the news:
Children buried alive in Hindu ritual

May 29, 2012 at 1:50 pm |

John White

As far as I am concerned this is Pakistan's internal matter. The message Pakistan is sending is that they won't be muscled by any external meddling. US should understand that all countries in the region have different DNA and this is not meek and timid India they are used to dealing with. Pakistan is a proud country with a rich heritage free of medieval and barbaric cultural practices, unlike India, and will not tolerate any interference by USA or others. Period.

When it involves terrorists, it becomes a NATO, US and concerns the whole world. The Pakistani action is truly outrageous. Can't just move on and let the doctor rot in jail for 33 years for helping the US.

Child, then send the seals and pluck him out. What are you waiting for? Typical Indian talk no b@lls. Indian army 1.2million are hiding in trenches from talibans and then some behind US/NATO skirts. Talk Talk Talk no action.

May 29, 2012 at 1:53 pm |

Janet Ambrose

In the civilized world treason gets the death sentence. US gave Jonathan Pollard Israeli spy life sentence for a paltry treason. This handsome doc should be given a chance to defend and if found guilty should get at least life and then some. 33 yrs is too light for treason. That in fact is the issue. The rest is balderdash.

@Janet You need to read. Not only read but have some understanding too. The doctor was after a terrorist - not after any sensitive information of his country. Pollard had nothing to do with terrorism - and he was after sensitive information of his country. Janet, you need to subscribe to a magazine or a newspaper. Please read anything.... and then you will not be so clueless.

Reread. Treason is treason is treason. Whichever way you slice the onion it comes out as treason. We agree to disagree.You are comparing coconuts to papiya. Perhaps you should reread and rethink to really grasp the issue at hand. Shooting off the hip on CNN forum is easy.

May 29, 2012 at 1:57 pm |

sheila

Clinton hath spoken. Thirty-three million smackers lopped off Pakistan’s aid budget because its spooks banged up poor old Dr Shakeel Afridi for 33 years after a secret trial. And, as the world knows, Dr Afridi’s crime was to confirm the presence of that old has-been Osama bin Laden in his grotty Abbottabad villa.

Well, that will teach the Pakistanis a lesson. Forget the CIA’s black prisons and rendition and water-boarding, and the torture of the innocents in the jails of our friendly dictators. Dr Afridi was just doing the free world a favour. And WOW, Dr Afridi got shopped by Leon Pannetta when he was CIA boss, and now Barack Obama is accused of letting him down.

Well, I pause here. Dr Afridi was brought before a secret trial in the Khyber tribal area – no charge sheets, no lawyers, no statements from the defendant or the prosecution, just a measly accusation of conspiracy against the state of Pakistan and “high treason”. I’ve never known the difference between “treason” and “high treason” but – since Pakistan’s security apparatus is a mirror image of the British Empire – I assume it was invented by us. “High treason” means treason against the monarch. By fingering Bin Laden, after using a ruse about vaccinating his family against hepatitis B to gain access to him, Dr Afridi was committing treason against King Asif Ali Zardari, otherwise known as the President of Pakistan.

But hold on a moment. Let’s suppose Vladimir Putin sent a KGB/FSB hit squad to Britain to murder a former agent called Alexander Litvinenko who had turned against his old spymasters. And let’s suppose that the Russians murdered Litvinenko. Which – in real life – they did. And Litvinenko – in real life – was indeed a trusted agent of the Russians, just as Bin Laden was a much-admired servant of the CIA when he was fighting the Russians in Afghanistan.

Getting a bit close to home? Well, let’s go a stage further. Supposing Litvinenko was murdered after being identified by a friendly British GP – working for the KGB/FSB – who vaccinated the Berezovsky family against hep B. What do Messrs Cameron and Clegg and the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police and the Lord Chief Justice and the Lord High Executioner and all the other nabobs do? Do they accuse the British GP of treason, clap him in irons, stage a hush-hush trial covered by the Official Secrets Act and send the chap off to rot in the Tower of London for – say – 33 years?

Or do they accept a bribe from Moscow of, say, $33m (£21m) to let the GP out of jug so he can potter off to Moscow to be given a new home and restart his career as a doktor for the nomenklatura?

In other words, are the Pakistanis being so dastardly when they lock up a national who has helped a foreign power murder an exile inside his own country of Pakistan? And, more to the point, wouldn’t we do the same?

And let’s take the story of hypocrisy a stage further. Wasn’t there a brave Israeli citizen called Mordechai Vanunu, who, in opposition to the nuclear weapons that his country was amassing in secret, spoke out to the world about this outrageous threat to international world order and was subsequently kidnapped from Italy by intelligence agents, tried in Israel for “treason” – in secret, of course – and spent 18 years in prison? Now I grant you that’s 15 years shorter than poor old Dr Afridi, but Vanunu still lives under grave restrictions to his liberty and has twice been imprisoned again for the heinous crime of chatting to foreign journalists.And has La Clinton threatened to suspend a single dollar of Israel’s annual $3bn in aid from the United States for the next 33 years in order to protest Israel’s treatment of Vanunu? Not to mention – not even to utter the words – Sabra and Chatila, Gaza, a 45-year occupation, illegal colonisation of West Bank land, etc, etc, or, indeed, for producing nuclear weapons. And we absolutely must not mention Jonathan Pollard, the former CIA and US Navy intelligence officer sentenced to life in prison in 1987 for spying for Israel. For if Pollard is not released, is Israel threatening to cut its aid to America? Hold on, that doesn’t quite compute, does it? But you get the point.

It’s about hypocrisy. Sure, Pakistan is a corrupt country. Sure, it is corrupt from the shoeshiner up to the pinnacles of power. But I suppose in the end, if you’re going to prostitute yourself to America – financially and militarily, as Pakistan has done for decades – that’s the price you pay. Which is why hypocrisy will win. For Dr Afridi, I predict, will be quietly given a substantial reduction in his sentence, will be released – or disappear – from his Pakistani prison and, in a few months/ years, when Zardari has scored enough points from Dr Afridi’s imprisonment, the good doctor will pop up in the US with a fine medical practice and the pleasure of knowing – of course – that La Clinton has re-endowed Pakistan with its missing $33m.

This news is extremely troubling. We need to start mobilizing our congregation against the hindu extremism against Christians.

New, More Dangerous Hindu Extremist Groups Emerge in India

Christians concerned as rightwing factions splinter to form militant outfits.
PUNE, India, October 29 (CDN) — After more than a decade of severe persecution, India’s Christian minority is growing increasingly concerned over the mushrooming of newer and deadlier Hindu extremist groups.

Gone are the days when Christians had to watch out only for the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (World Hindu Council) and its youth wing, Bajrang Dal, which are closely linked with the most influential Hindu extremist umbrella organization, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). With voter support faltering for the RSS’s political wing, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), moderate and extremist sections within the Hindu nationalist movement are blaming each other, and militant splinter groups have emerged.

Claiming to be breakaway factions of the RSS, new groups with even more extreme ideology are surfacing. The Abhinav Bharat (Pride of India), the Rashtriya Jagran Manch (National Revival Forum), the Sri Ram Sene (Army of god Rama), the Hindu Dharam Sena (Army for Hindu Religion) and the Sanatan Sanstha (Eternal Organization) have launched numerous violent attacks on Christian and Muslim minorities.

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CNN's Security Clearance examines national and global security, terrorism and intelligence, as well as the economic, military, political and diplomatic effects of it around the globe, with contributions from CNN's national security team in Washington and CNN journalists around the world.